Camping know-how
Straight answers to the questions that come up at camp: how to sleep warm when the night turns cold, what to do when a bear walks into view, whether to boil or filter, why a stove never comes into the tent, how to make ice last, and where to go when thunder starts.
How these guides work
Each guide opens with the short answer, then gives the steps, the common mistakes and the questions people actually ask. Safety advice comes from the agencies that set it (the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, CDC, USDA, National Weather Service and state wildlife agencies) plus the instructions printed by the gear makers, and every source is linked and dated at the bottom of the page.
Where a guide touches gear, it links to our head-to-head comparisons, such as sleeping pads and quilts, bear canisters, water filters, camp stoves and coolers.
Cold, shelter and weather
How to stay warm in a tent on a cold night
Stop the heat loss from below first: sleep on an insulated pad, and stack a foam pad under an inflatable when the ground is cold. Then use a bag or quilt rated for the night’s low, change into dry layers and a hat, and eat before bed. Never bring a stove, grill or fuel heater inside.
GuideLightning safety while camping and hiking
A tent or picnic shelter gives no protection from lightning. When you hear thunder, get into a hard-topped vehicle or an enclosed building and wait 30 minutes after the last thunder. If you can’t reach one, leave peaks, ridges and open ground, stay away from tall trees, water and metal, and spread your group out.
GuideCan you use a camp stove or heater in a tent? Carbon monoxide explained
No. Camp stoves, grills, lanterns and unvented propane heaters make carbon monoxide, an odorless gas that can kill people while they sleep. The CDC says opening tent doors or windows is not enough to prevent it building up. Cook outside, away from the tent, and stay warm with insulation instead.
Bears, water and food
What to do if you see a bear while camping or hiking
Stay calm and do not run. Talk to the bear in a low voice, pick up small children, and back away slowly, sideways if you can, leaving the bear an escape route. Have bear spray ready. If a grizzly attacks defensively, play dead; if a black bear attacks, fight back.
GuideBoil or filter? How to treat water when camping
Boil when you can: a rolling boil for 1 minute, or 3 minutes above 6,500 feet, kills viruses, bacteria and parasites. If you can’t boil, filter first and then disinfect, because most backpacking filters remove parasites and bacteria but not viruses. No method removes chemical contamination.
GuideHow to keep a cooler cold longer when camping
Pre-chill the cooler and everything going in it, then pack about twice as much ice as food, with block ice under cubes. Fill empty space, keep the cooler shaded and covered, open it as little as possible, and keep drinks in a second cooler. Food must stay at 40°F or below.
Before any trip
- Check the land unit. Food-storage orders, fire restrictions and closures are set park by park and forest by forest, and they change during the season.
- Check the forecast for the overnight low and thunderstorms, not just the daytime high.
- Tell someone your plan and when you expect to be back.